On this day in 1540, the notorious wife-chaser King Henry VIII married his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves. At this time, Henry was still grieving the death of his 'true wife,' Jane Seymour, who had died giving him what he wanted most - a living son and heir to the English throne. Jane lay in her ornate grave for three years before Henry decided to take another wife, in order to ensure the line of succession, and hopefully produce a few spare heirs.

It was Thomas Cromwell, Henry's Master Secretary, who suggested the German Anne of Cleves. She was the sister of the Duke of Cleves, and Cromwell saw it as a safe match and alliance, which would protect England from a possible attack from the Catholic church. Hans Holbein the Younger, the King's main painter and portraiter, was sent immediately to Cleves to paint Anne. When he returned to England with the portrait, the King was apparently pleased, and because of the pressure he felt from his council to remarry, he ordered for her to be sent to him immediately.Well, that proved to have a different effect than Henry anticipated. As soon as Anne was introduced to him, Henry reportedly found her utterly unattractive and may have referred to her as a "Flanders mare." Although the two were married in England on this day, their wedding night proved to be a disappointment too, as Henry later confided that he could not bring himself to consummate

the marriage with her because he found her so distasteful. OUCH. It is said that during the time they were married, Henry would come into Anne's chambers and merely kiss her forehead before retiring for the night. Later, when their marriage was annulled per Henry's request, Anne testified and admitted that there had been no intimacies between them. Henry continuously referred to her as "a horse" during their marriage, and berated both Hans Holbein and Thomas Cromwell for falsely convincing him that she was a beauty.

In Showtime's "The Tudors," Anne of Cleves is portrayed by Joss Stone, who in reality is very attractive! The show has a few historical inaccuracies regarding this relationship, for example in the fourth season, when Henry realizes that he misses and might love Anne afterall, once he is married to Katherine Howard! This didn't happen - in fact, once Henry annulled this marriage after a mere six months, he fondly regarded Anne as his 'beloved sister' for the rest of his life. She received a generous settlement, including Richmond Palace and Hever Castle, and remained a close friend of the King and a frequent visitor at court for the rest of her life.

SO...although it's not necessarily a 'Happy Anniversary' for Henry and Anne, it's also not a tragic Tudor love story. Luckily these two found a way to work it out, even if there was no attraction!

One of the most fascinating, romantic, and unforunately tragic romances in all of history, but namely in Tudor history, is none other than the famous romance of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. I'm not going to go into much detail about their courtship and relationship, because I'm sure that whoever is reading this has already formed a pretty solid background on this famous and well-known Tudor figure (Anne). However, I do want to share with you a great book that I bought on Amazon.com a few months ago - It was one of the best Tudor purchases I've made. I bought this book for roughly a dollar (!) online, and it shipped within just a few days. The title of the book is "Love Letters of Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn." It is illustrated by Florence Swan, and there are notes by J.O. Phillips.

I would consider this book a must-have for any lover of Tudor England, and especially a lover of Tudor romances. I never quite understood why women found King Henry to be a desireable man - Yes, I had heard that he was quite attractive in his youth, but I have yet to find a decent picture of him. Also, I had a hard time getting over the idea that he was notoriously pushy with his women, and (as we all know) had a bit of a tyrannical, murderous streak. Maybe the beheading of his two doomed wives wasn't quite considered "murder," but I think you know what I mean. I always thought that women may have fallen in love with him simply because he was King and had more power than any man in England - maybe that was enough to make a woman fall in love back then? Now, however, I understand. After reading all seventeen letters written by Henry himself to his mistress and love, Anne, I understand the power he had over women. It came with his gift of words. Upon reading these letters, I dare you to try not to fall a bit in love with the man behind the quill and parchment (at least until you remember his later years). Some of the lines he uses in his letters, describing his love for Anne, are lines we just don't hear anymore. The ways he conveys his feelings in these letters is

enough to make me wish I could visit his court and hear him say those words in person. (Again, I don't think I would want to receive those words of affection, because I wouldn't want to have to deal wth the consequences of getting close to him...). My personal favorite of his letters is the fourth one written in the book. It starts with the line, "My heart and I surrender ourselves into your hands..." and also involves a beautiful metaphor about the sun - "the longer the days are, the more distant is the sun, and nevertheless hotter; so is it with our love, for by absence we are kept a distance from one another, and yet it retains its fervour, at least on my side." In his fifth letter, he even signs his name with a heart, containing the letters "A.B." Throughout the letters, Henry tells Anne that he "is and shall always be" hers, and frequently refers to himself as her "servant." It is hard not to become a bit entranced by his romantic side - it's not a side we usually see or hear about when researching Henry. Normally, we think of the older King Henry (when he was not so attractive), and we frequently label him as a lusty, ambitious King, who took many mistressed and had little care for any of the women in his life. However, it is very clear to me that King Henry really did feel. He had a romantic way with words, and I genuinely think he meant everything he said to Anne in these letters. It's amazing to read them, and to be able to put yourself in Anne's position as she read them and received the little gifts he sent her, which he mentions. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in this romance. You can find it easily on Amazon.com!Comments? Questions? I'm interested in your feedback!